Utility vehicles have become increasingly popular means of transportation The vehicle is a hybrid between a pickup truck and a station wagon and is designed to carry four or more people and permit storage of luggage, equipment or the like behind the rear seat. The rear seat is normally foldable downwardly to permit two passengers and increased luggage or equipment to be carried. The vehicles are normally constructed with a passenger side and driver side door and in some instances, two additional doors to allow direct access to the rear seat.
In most instances, access to the rear storage area is through a two-piece rear door. The top half of the rear door is comprised of the rear window and frame with the lower half of the rear door being of solid construction. The window portion of the rear door is normally hingeably secured to the roof of, the vehicle along the window frame upper edge. The solid construction lower half portion of the rear door is hingeably secured proximate to the rear bumper to permit the lower portion of the rear door to pivot downwardly. In securing the rear of the vehicle, the lower portion of the door is normally secured in upright locked position first, and then the upper window portion is pivoted downwardly having a central latch plate hasp for locking engagement with a locking means in the lower door portion. The upper window portion of the rear door is normally secured to piston supports on the lateral edges which will hold the window in an upright position when open so as not to interfere with access to the rear cargo area.
A problem oftentimes arises with respect to the operation of the aforesaid vehicles in that it is not possible to obtain any cross ventilation while operating the vehicle since the rear window is in a locked position. It is not advisable to operate the vehicle with the rear window in a totally upright position in that airflow around the vehicle and bumps encountered by the vehicle may damage the window supports. Additionally, operating the vehicle with the window in its upright open position could lead to the loss of luggage, equipment or the like stored in the storage area. Operating the vehicle with the passenger side window or driver's side window slightly open will provide some ventilation, but is not sufficient to remove cigarette smoke or the like, and oftentimes disrupts or interferes with the desired temperature that the operator wishes to maintain within the vehicle.
The present invention is directed to a mechanism which easily mounted on the existing latch of the rear window of such a vehicle which allows the rear window to be lowered and engaged, with the locking mechanism of the lower portion of the door to secure the window in a locked mode yet still provide for a passageway between the upper window portion of the rear door and the lower solid portion of the rear door such that airflow and ventilation within the vehicle will flow rearwardly and exit through this passageway, the passageway being of such a dimension that luggage, equipment or the like stored behind the rear seat cannot exit the vehicle.